Along For It All
by Zuzzeroo
Summary: One-shots to DomiRae's challenge. Dasey. Review Please
1. Sun

_Well, I am back folks! It's been close to a year or over that I've written anything and posted it. But this is the DomiRae's One-shot challenge. These are not in any order and not a story. Sort of just little clips from the lives of Derek and Casey. I am a very big Dasey shipper so I will try and add as much of that in here as I can. If there are any mistakes in this please let me know!_

_I am also recommending something else. The title for my story is called "Along for it All" which is based on the title from the book I just finished reading "Along for the Ride" by Sarah Dessen. It is a truly an amazing book that If you enjoy a good Dasey story, you will love._

_Review please!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing_

**36. Sun**

Summer was here, in full swing. Well, this was the first actual day where the thermometer hit +30'C, which basically meant a trip to the beach. Sam and I had figured this out. When it was this hot, there was a good chance girls would be wearing the tiniest of the tiny bikinis. The perfect day for a trip to the beach.

Of course, I was now dating Emily. That meant all of these gorgeous girls with their amazing curves and bright eyes were now off limits. Something I wasn't sure was that fantastic when I had a giggling Emily beside me in the passenger seat wearing a deep purple one-suit.

I wasn't a pig of course, but I was a man. When your girl dresses up –or dresses down for you, it does make you feel a little better about no longer being single and free.

Sam's jeep was full of everything and more (thanks to the girls in the vehicle) then we really needed. But with Emily coming on this last minute trip meant cancelling her shopping plans with Casey. And then Casey of course would be all alone since Truman was spending the summer with his family up in Chicago and that wasn't fair. So she _had _to come. It was the polite thing to do –so I've been told. So Sam, Casey, Emily and I were headed out to the beach. For sun, waves and basically being happy high school wasn't coming back to get us after August.

"Pull over to your right Derek, or you're going to miss it." And then there was long brown hair sweeping against my shoulder as Casey leaned over to look at me.

"Backseat drivers are frowned upon in most societies Case."

"You know, I don't really care. If we don't turn we're going to miss it and I'll be the one going in to ask the creepy guy who works at the gas station where the road is..."

I turned to my right sharply, causing everyone to grab the doors and seats to avoid crashing into the thing next to you. I heard an abrupt angry sigh and turned around to look at Casey, grabbing the handles on the ceiling and trying not to hit Sam, who was squished against the door; next to her.

"I hate you." She hissed.

"Good."

----

The parking lot was packed, which meant I had to park all the way at the very end of the lot.

"I hate walking in the hot sun." _Does she not know how to say anything that isn't her just complaining?_

"Well I can see that. You should try and do it though. It might help get rid of those..."

"Just stop it dude. Try and get along for my sake." Sam was shaking his head, and lifted the wave board a little higher up under his arm. He was carrying his and Casey's beach bags. She might spill something. Cue rolling eyes here.

"For _my_ sake." Emily's hand slipped into my free one. At least she can carry her own bag.

Passing the last row of cars, we had to stop as a convertible with the top down, backed out, full of blonde haired girls wearing bright coloured bikinis. They waved at us, laughing and I felt Emily's hand grip mine tighter. Her little nails digging into my skin so painfully it almost caused me to rip my hand out. Almost.

"Sluts." I heard Casey mumble behind my shoulder and I turned around to give her a look. She always had to do this.

"D, let's go find a spot on the beach, right close to the water."

"Alright."

I followed my best friend weaving in and out through various people and umbrellas before we found a spot, 10 feet away from the water. Emily still hadn't finished letting go of my hand, and she was holding it tighter, if that was even possible. Eyeing all the girls walking around, playing beach volleyball and frisbee. All in tight, small bikini's.

It was really _really_ starting to hurt now, so I slipped my hand out of hers and made a show of lying out my towel and bag beside Sam's and unfortunately also beside Casey's. Emily huffed a little and put hers down beside Casey.

"I'm gonna go catch some waves. You goin' come Derek?" Sam was up already, board in his hand and shirt and sandals placed down on the towel. I saw my board peeking out from underneath my bag and was ready to grab it when I heard someone clear their throat.

"Maybe later Sam. Derek promised to help me put on my sunscreen."

_I did?_

"Oh." Sam looked at me, obviously no sure what to make out of this. I just shrugged and offered my best, convincing smile at Emily. She grinned back and started pulling various things out of her bag.

Sam shot me a look and said he'd see me later and headed out towards the water and right pass a group of girls who were speaking with French accents. Damn.

"No!"

I reluctantly turned away from the group of girls to look at Emily. She was sitting on her towel, her purple one-suit stood out more than anything. Her entire bag was emptied around her.

"I forgot my sunscreen! I cannot have forgotten it! No!"

_That was it? Seriously. I had sunscreen. I'm sure everyone on this sand covered land had sunscreen. Why did it matter if she didn't have hers?_

"Here Em," I glanced down and gulped. Casey was reaching behind her, grabbing her sunscreen. She had her hair now tied in a ponytail, sunglass's covered her eyes and she was wearing a very tiny white bikini with pink polka-dots. Double damn.

She was lying on her back, so I got a very clear view of everything, from her chest being covered by very flimsy material, down to her flat stomach, and her toned thighs. I shook my head. This was not a good thing for me to thing. No. This was bad. Very bad. This was my step-sister. I needed to...think about Emily.

"-you can use mine." I was broke back into the real world when I heard her finish her sentence. Emily was shaking her head and pushing the bottle back.

"Thanks but no. Your stuff is very weak, so you can tan. I need the strong stuff, like 50. If I burn at all, my Mom won't let me come back here ever again until it's like December. I need to buy some. Derek can I borrow a ten?"

I reached in my wallet and grabbed her ten bucks. This was starting to become a habit. Emily always seemed to have no money. I was always helping her buy the smoothie at the snack bar, or the one pair of shoes she just _had_ to have and money for the vanilla ice cream her Mom was planning to have for dessert that night. I had invested a lot of money into a lot of cheap things she needed. After all she carried a huge ugly green bag around with her everywhere. Was there no money at all?

"I'll come too."

And God no, Casey stood up as well, quite gracefully which surprised me a little. Emily scurried up quickly behind her, kicking sad on Casey's towel as she tried to get up and lean over to give me a kiss at the same time. Emily, the multi-tasker.

I watched them go. Watched them walk away. Watched Casey as she walked...No! Look at Emily. Sigh.

This was getting absolutely ridiculous, I thought as I took off my shirt and rolled over onto my stomach. I needed to get this whole going to the same university thing with Casey out of my mind. I was just still bummed about that. Yeah, that was it.

"Boo."

There she was. Back on her towel, right beside me. She squinted at me and tilted her head to the side a little. Probably trying to figure out why I was staring at her so intensely. Actually, that's what I was trying to figure out myself.

"Derek, are you okay?"

I blinked.

"Where is Emily?"

She gave a sigh, sort of off-handed like this was something she had rather been hoping I wouldn't bring up. Like a mother praying her child won't ask for a cookie before supper when guests are over.

"Well, we went to that little convenient store and she went straight to that big display by the washrooms with all that tacky surfer cardboard cut outs-"

"Casey." I counted slowly to ten in my head. This was why she annoyed the hell out of me. Why did she have to make_ everything _so damn difficult?

"Oh." She flushed and looked down at the sand. "Right. Anyways, she ran into Sheldon who has some weird problem with vitamin D and they hit it off and started talking and I really didn't need to hear how Sheldon was and how his new job was going at...I mean who in their right mind would work-"

"Casey!"

A pause.

"Sorry."

I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried not to think of the Casey in the tiny bikini next to me, but rather the one that was pissing me off, right now. It at least meant I didn't have to look at her.

"Did she say if she's coming back?"

"Derek. Emily is your girlfriend. I'm sure she'll come back. She just hasn't seen Sheldon in a while and wants to catch up. That's all."

I just looked at her. She shrugged and picked at the end of the towel, still sitting up, close enough to me I could count the polka-dots on the left cup of her bikini top. She wasn't making any move to lie back down. She still had something to tell me.

"What else is there?" I asked. She looked up.

"What makes you think there is anything else?"

I shrugged and gave her another pointed look.

"I donno. You just have that "I need to tell Derek something." look."

"Well...you know...how Emily can talk. She'll be there for a while...And Sam wants you to go surf with him...I have never learned how to surf..."

I rolled my eyes but smiled a little at this.

"Come on."


	2. Black

_Thanks for the reviews lovely readers. I'm trying to make these as unique as possible so if you have any suggestions, complaints, there is a litte suggestion box. Down, after the story there is a button. It opens the suggestion box. Send me some hints and tips please. I'm greedy. :)_

_Enjoy this._

_Disclaimer: Nothing_

_Hugs, Kisses + Chocolate Pudding_

_xoxoTaraxoxo_

**13. Black**

"What the hell happened to you?"

"It doesn't look good?"

I blinked. When she walked in the door I'd hardly recognized her. My mind started going off in a slightly pleasant direction, which is now at a halt since I actually see who it is. Damn.

She was biting her lip now; her right hand was unconsciously tugging at her hair, now a shiny black, while her left was clasping the strap of her bag. I sighed and shook my head at her.

"Casey, you have black hair." I stated.

"So it doesn't look good?" She repeated.

I squinted at her. Her hair was a little shorter which I didn't like that much. It was straightened yet her natural waves still showed a little around the edges. I could smell the shampoo they used, which just smelt like a freaking flower garden. Yeah, it looked...I honestly had no words for it yet.

"Why did you do it?"

She shot me a look, crossed the room, kicking my chair slightly so I started rocking, the whole thing squeaking, and sat down on the couch with a groan. Like she was doing me a favour by telling me this obviously long tail.

"Hello? Casey? Answer me."

She shot me that look again. It made me feel uneasy. Something clenched in my stomach a little. I wasn't sure if it was good or not.

"You're just going to laugh at me."

I shook my head, wondering if this was part of her plan. To play it up so much, like it was some big secret, just so I would actually listen to her.

"Okay," she sighed again and picked up one of the magazines on the coffee table in front of her. Flipping through it. I could see her trying to comprehend the best way to go about the situation. She flipped her hair back, all a sleek black now and continued.

"Truman and I were at the movies last week and he was going on and on about this one movie coming out. I forget what it's called. Anyways, the girl in it has shinny black hair it looks almost blue."

I had seen the previews for it on TV, but I had also forgotten the title. It was a long one though. To many words I didn't understand. I would have to get Edwin to find out more about it for me later. I heard noise coming from my right, now speaking in a higher octave then before. She was still talking.

"-never really thought about it before but he said every guy likes one hair colour on girls more than any other. He said he'd always preferred the dark hair. Made it all more mysterious."

I had to backtrack a little, catch up with what she was saying.

"So, just to make sure I got this. You dyed your hair black, for a guy?"

She tilted her head to the left. "Well actually the correct term is roasted chestnut, but...I guess I did."

She must have caught my bemused expression for she quickly rushed on to finish her little rant.

"You don't understand. Truman and I have been on really rough ground lately. He is picking at all these little things about me and...We're going to school in different provinces and I just...I feel like I'm going to be losing so much if we end badly."

"I don't follow."

"Like..." She ran a hand through her hair, looking at the ceiling as she tried to put an order to her thoughts. The magazine she was looking at was now on the floor, where it had fallen off her lap, forgotten.

"I don't want to be alone this summer. I want to end my last summer in London with a happy relationship and a happy me. I want to go away to university knowing that Truman and I are figured out. Either together or not, but right now I feel so unsure. Used in a way. Like I'm wasting my time. He's coming back from Chicago in two weeks and I just...I want things to be good. You know?"

I frankly had no clue what she meant by all these words, excuses, blab. It was depressing her though...enough to make her change her hair colour, which was pretty stupid. What was it with the hair thing anyways? She had changed her style for him in high school when he had that stupid number chart going on, had changed her evenings to attend parties with him and now her hair? It didn't make sense. This whole Truman thing...and hair?

I looked at her face. She looked sort of...sick actually. Tired and defeated. This was so not about Truman. There was something bigger going on here.

"Bullshit."

She looked up, glaring at me.

"Excuse me?"

"The evil ice which voice just makes my theory stronger."

"Now, _I _don't follow."

"Casey... he has got you to change so much for him already that I honestly don't believe that you haven't figured it out. You're just _embracing_ it." I made a face. "You dying your hair has nothing to do with Truman so cut the act. Your relationship has been on quicksand for a long time. You know it, I know it and he knows it. It's going to end. This pathetic hair thing is not some last life line." I blew out a breath and looked at her.

She looked a little stunned at first. The just plain pissed. The darker hair really added to that look. Her eyes seemed brighter and her pink lips a little more fuller. Her skin also looked slightly more tanned. Her face seemed longer, if that made sense. She looked dazzling. Like some modern beautiful Pocahontas. All she needed was the tiny outfit and she could play the part.

"That is completely preposterous." She stuttered.

"What is the real reason, Case?" I asked quietly. It was a very nice thing no one else was home. The kiddlings were all in camp. Some weird adventure thing that helped boost self-esteem. The rents were at work. I had to smile a little at the thought of Nora, when she gets home and sees her daughter with her new dark hair.

She looked over her shoulder slightly before standing up. She bent down and to grab the magazine and place it back on the table, her hair falling in front of her face like a curtain.

"Every girl can dye her hair Derek. Tons of girls have dark hair and nobody gets all weird at them about it. Besides, it's not the permanent kind. This will only last for about a month and then it washes right out."

I was relieved at that. I wasn't sure why though. I tried to ignore this by saying one of my usual comments."

"You're hardly a girl though Case."

She sighed as if she was trying hard to be respectful and listen to me. Like she was a teacher and I was the only child who wouldn't clean up his pencil crayons.

"Every girl can do it. It's not that big of a deal if they do it for a guy. Even Emily has dark hair and I've never seen you complaining."

That was extremely confusing, but as I watched her trudge up the stairs, I felt that she more honest with me then, then she ever has been. I just didn't understand it though.


	3. Tears

_Well first of all, I am very sorry for the long update wait. I wiped out on my bike this summer and totally wrecked my knee. Couldn't walk, had to go to the hospital. It was all swollen and I had bruises all over my leg. I can walk, run and bike ride now basically perfect though. I also started school and my teachers are a little more tougher than I've ever had them before. I'm back on the writing horse though. _

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

_Review! _

_Hugs, Kisses and Chocolate Pudding_

**16. Tears**

"Marti?" Casey called, coming out of her room.

One thing she missed about that lovely apartment she lived in a lifetime ago; was that you could move a step over and not everybody in the house; would hear the floor squeak or hear your music like you were right beside the speakers. These walls were paper thin.

She saw a shadow under Derek's bedroom door move quickly. That was followed by the floor making a typical floor noise. Derek had a hockey game so the family was there, cheering him on. They would win, just like they did every time, and then George and Mom would insist that everyone gets a big lunch at _Boston Pizza_ to celebrate. Not really caring about when she wins a dance competition and all they do for her, is pick up some _Dominos _pizza for her and give her hugs.

Marti hadn't been feeling well lately and as her Mom said.

"Casey wouldn't want to go to Derek's hockey game anyways, let her stay home with Marti and take care of her."

Stupid, pregnant, mixed up thoughts. She very much did want to go to Derek's hockey game. Only for the nice victory meal at the end, and a little for the fact that after he wins a game, sometimes, he smiles really big and gives her a look that makes her shiver all the way down to her toes. It's nothing like out of a romance novel, but it comes pretty close.

Instead, she was stuck her with Marti. Marti who had cried about missing her Smerek's big game, and how he would lose without her as his luck charm. She cried, and then her throat got even sorer. Casey managed to get her to take a couple Tylenol's, but then she had disappeared, still crying as she ran up the stairs, slamming doors and stomping around. At least Casey had an idea where she was. Now all of that noise had stopped, and Casey started to get a little scared.

"Marti?" She tried again.

She heard the sound of a CD case, sliding against a couple others. Yes, that was defiantly coming from Derek's room.

I opened the door slowly, already holding my breath so the aroma of unwashed socks and pizza crusts from two weeks ago, wouldn't hit me that hard.

There she was, curled up on his bed. Clutching that pink monkey, Derek gave to her for Valentine's Day. She was still crying, and looked to be trying really hard not to cough. I felt my Motherly/Big Sister instincts pull me towards her, and I sat on the bed corner of the bed closets to her, pushing my black hair over my shoulder as I bent down and kissed her forehead.

"Smarti?"

She cried harder and I quickly lied down beside her, slipping an arm over her. I remember when we first moved it and all I thought was she was cute, but going to get into a lot of my things, and be a constant nuisance. I regret that now.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?"

She took a couple deep breaths, trying to calm herself. I wiped some tears off of her face and gave her an encouraging smile.

"Derek isn't mad his luck charm is missing this one game. He wants her to feel better. He understands."

She shook her head. Clearly this is not what she was thinking.

"He-he's not ma-d at me about tha-t." I gave her a hug.

"He's not mad at all, Marti. He was happy when he left, a little nervous, but happy."

She took some more deep breaths and sat up a little. Her pink monkey was now on the bed beside her, sprawled in some way that didn't look healthy. I sat up as well, and she leaned against me.

"He was mad at me for being sic-k."

"No, no, no, Marti. You have it all wrong. Derek isn't mad at you at all."

I watched as she sighed, trying to keep the tears at bay. I put my arm around her, grabbing "Sugar" and placing it in her lap. I watched as she picked it up and hugged it to her chest. Her little hands smoothing out his fur as she thought about what she was going to say.

"He is mad, because I am sick. I am sick and you need to stay behind and help me get better. If I didn't have the flu, then you could be at the game right now."

I was a little confused by this. I knew Derek told Marti a lot of things. A lot of his personal thoughts and feelings towards people and events. If he was nervous for a hockey game or for a date with a girl, Marti knew about it. Before I first met Derek, I know for a fact that he got Marti to give him all the dirty details with how I looked, talked, walked and how much I was opposed to water balloons.

"What are you saying, Marti? Does Derek want me to be at his games?"

She nodded her head.

"Yes. He does." She stated simply.

Before I could get anymore words out, I heard the front door open and the sound of voices filling the down stairs. Paper thin walls, remember?

I glanced at the alarm clock sitting on Derek's nightstand. They were home early. No _Boston Pizza_.

"Come on." I said and took her hand as we slid off the bed. We made our way down the hallway and when we got to the top of the stairs, I smelt it. Pasta, with fettuccini sauce. The same kind I always got when we went to _Boston Pizza_. Did they bring it here?

But just then, Marti let go of my hand and ran down the stairs and over to Derek. He was right by the door, hanging up some of his hockey gear on the special hooks Mom got put up for him. She wrapped her arms around him, and he picked her up. She mumbled something to him and he mumbled something back. It was such a sweet moment, that I felt my heart warm up a little bit as I watched them.

"How did the game go?" I asked when I saw my Mom come back into view. She smiled at me, her big belly swaying a little as she walked over. Her scarf was hanging over the back of Derek's chair and she grabbed it, throwing it over her shoulder.

"Derek's team won." My Mom replied with a smile. She waddled back to the kitchen. I heard plates and cups being placed on the table. I made my way slowly down the stairs.

"What's all this?"

"Derek decided it might be a little better if we brought _Boston Pizza _home with us, so you and Marti could have some too."

"Only because Spacey wouldn't stop complaining how hungry she was for her weird pasta dish."

Derek was behind me now, he had placed Marti down and we watched as she scampered off to the kitchen, a smile on her face now instead of tears.

"How was the game?" I asked Derek quietly.

He shrugged, reaching up to tug on a piece of my hair. He was always doing that now.

"It could have been better." He whispered to me.


	4. Gene Lamp

_This is rather short, but it's going to be harder to get chapters up during the week, so I thought I'd give you another little something to enjoy before the dreaded Monday comes. I actually thought of this idea a while ago and am still totally adoring it. I hope you all like it, and find it as funny as I do. _

_Hugs, Kisses + Chocolate Pudding_

_Review please_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

**30. Gene Lamp**

"Edwin Venturi! You better get down here and explain yourself!"

A very sheepish looking teen appeared in the entrance of the computer room.

Since the family was expecting another little body, the housing arrangements were all switched around.

Derek and Casey were leaving in less than a month for university, so at the moment, Casey was bunking with Lizzie. George and Nora got their old room back. Derek was staying in the living room on a cot, because Edwin has nasal problems, which involve the windows being rattled and Derek complaining the ear plugs he stole from George's "Mowing the Lawn" box in the messy garage, didn't help at all.

Derek's room was in a current state of...there wasn't really a word for it. Nora being six months into the pregnancy was relying very much on him and Casey to help get his room transformed into a nursery. He wasn't excited about the idea at all. He tried talking to his Dad about at least making it a guest bedroom and not filling it ful of baby crap. His Dad had no backbone when it came to arguing with a very pregnant, hormonal Nora. In fact, Derek was the same way. So the battle was lost and the cleaning and transforming work began. Taking off his posters was the worst thing. Then finding them gone from the box he put them in, and Edwin refusing to let him into his attic room made him have a clear idea of where they had gone. He missed his posters.

After everything had been taken out of his room. Bed, dresser, computer, all of it was gone and his room sme;t like someone had covered every inch of it and sick, citrus smelling stuff (CoughCaseyCough), Derek couldn't beleive how big his room actually was. Without the hockey gear and laundry taking up a good chunk of it and his bed not filling up most of the space, it was actaully a good size room. Sadly, it was going to be the McDonald/Venturi mutant's room now.

They had painted the room a very soft, sea foam green with white trim. The baby crib and all the other odd items Derek couldn't remember the names for, were sitting in the boxes they arrived in waiting for George to actually feel motivated to make them. Or until he got sick of Nora complaining to him that his child would be born in three months and it better have a happy environment around it.

The basement was now full of the family's electronics. They had got a Wii a little while ago, so that was down there. The family computer was down there as well, which Derek was currently playing the first, oldest _Sims _game. The rents were too cheap to buy anything else, plus the computer was so old, that the newer games probably wouldn't work on it anyways.

Earlier this month, Edwin created their family. Everyone was in it, with the personalities to match. George was the lazy, yet fun loving Dad. Nora was the cleaning nice house lady that was constantly getting stressed and sad when she saw how dirty the house was. He was the sport loving, ladies. Casey was the studious neat freak. Lizzie was the nature lover, Edwin the odd ball, and Marti was usually off in her own little world, painting or playing with her dolls, that Derek couldn't really put a name to what she was, except special.

There was something wrong though.

Derek clicked on the house, and had barely been playing when one of those bubbles had popped up. He didn't understand why this bubble would be popping up, though. "Would you like you have a baby?"

When they had all started to play this game, Casey and Lizzie convinced everyone not to get Nora and George to "Play in bed" until the real thing was born and they all knew what sex it was going to be. That way they wouldn't have any surprises. He didn't understand it either, but he had never had an interest in making his Dad and Nora "Play" so he listened to what they said.

When he clicked _No_, it was Casey the screen zoomed to, not Nora. Casey made a sad, loud sigh and headed off towards the living room, out of her room.

"What's wrong, Derek?" Right, Edwin was still here.

Derek turned the swivel chair to face his brother and pointed at the top left corner of the screen.

"Why does it keep saying _Derek wants to kiss Casey passionately? Or romantically? Or fiery? _Why does it say Derek wants to kiss Casey at all?_"_

Edwin chuckled nervously, and started to slowly step backwards towards the door he came in. Derek's eyes narrowed.

"You told me last week that you wanted to do the whole Gene Lamp thing. Where I make one of the characters find "lamp" rub it and try to get a wish that turns out okay, in the end? I did that with your _sim _trying to get the family more money and things like that. I accidently clicked _Love_ and it chose Casey as being the closest with you and made her in love with you. She kissed you and then you started to fall in love with her. Now you make out, like all the time. I can't change it or stop it. I don't think Sims are suppose to fall in love that fast anyways. None of my other characters have before." I blinked at him.

"Its how the game works, Derek."

Shock. That was about the only thing going through Derek's mind at that moment. That and intense anger towards his little brother. Though he wasn't really surprised, as he watched his character march over too where Casey was talking with Nora and Marti as they were watching TV. He stood behind her until she got up from the couch. He then grabbed her and kissed her. Hard. They had always argued, and that would be a way to make her mad at him. Kiss her, hard, right in front of her Mother. Maybe even use a little tongue...

"See? They just do it. I didn't mean for it to happen Derek. Honestly."

Derek shook his head. This was so not a childrens game.

---

"Casey?"

"Yes Lizzie?"

"I have a question."

The topics and conversations during supper had always been a little out there. Lizzie was one of the people who started them. So when she started asking Casey as they were all eating some of Nora's famous hamburger casserole, nobody really payed any attention.

"You know the gene lamp on the _Sims Game_? Well, when you choose the _Love _option and someone becomes totally smitten with you, how long does it take for you to become smitten with them?"

People were paying attention now. Derek's eyebrows must have raised well into his hair line, while Edwin turned a slight shade of pink and suddenly seemed very interested with the peas on his plate. Everyone watched as Casey chewed her food, swallowed and took a sip of her water. Did she always take this long to answer questions that weren't important? Did you hear him? They weren't important. He didn't care. Honestly.

"Well it mostly depends on what the personality of the two people are Liz. If they match really well, and an attraction is obviously there, then it won't take that long for love to work its way into the relationship. Right, Mom?"

Nora smiled at her daughter and nodded her head.

"Spacey?"

She looked over at Derek now. And he suddenly felt his throat close up. Her white shirt that stood out against her skin and made her look like she was glowing. Her dark hair that had started to fade out, but was still there faintly, framed her face. He always liked it better down.

"Yes, Derek?"

He cleared his throat.

"You should go play _Sims _after supper. You'll change your tune."


End file.
